


The Perfect Egg

by Wle0416



Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: Big Brothers, Happy Ending, M/M, Personal Growth, mentoring
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-16
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:14:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,159
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25935739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wle0416/pseuds/Wle0416
Summary: The one where Michael decides to volunteer at the local Big Brothers Big Sisters chapter. With a little Malex on the side.
Relationships: Max Evans & Michael Guerin, Michael Guerin/Alex Manes
Comments: 16
Kudos: 73





	The Perfect Egg

**Author's Note:**

> Was talking to @Rose711 about what we'd love to see from Michael next season, and then this short story formed.

There was nothing Michael wanted more than to climb into bed and sleep for the next twenty-four hours.

It was a long Friday, under the sweltering, dry heat, and Michael had worked from sun up to sun down with one break around noon for some water and a ham sandwich. He was exhausted and halfway delirious, but he had a busy Saturday morning, and he still needed to run to the market for supplies.

Friday nights used to be a long night positioned next to a pool table, with a beer glued to his hand. But times, they were a-changing. And he shook his head fondly as he thought about the last month and a half of his life.

About six weeks back, he and Max were having some beers in front of the airstream when he mentioned he had signed up to be a Big Brother in the Big Brother Big Sister program that was new to Roswell.

"Well, you always think you're the smartest person in the room, and you love to boss people around. You'll be a great big brother!" Michael teased. He almost dropped his beer when Max shoved his shoulder.

"Hilarious, Michael," Max responded with nary a smile on his lips. "I'm excited, honestly. It's been a rough few weeks, and it will be good to, you know, make a new friend and just help someone."

Michael reached out and clasped Max's knee reassuringly. "You'll be great at it, Max."

"They're still looking for volunteers. It's just a few hours a month," Max said, eyebrow raised at Michael.

It didn't take a genius to understand where Max was headed with this, and if Michael was honest with himself, it wasn't exactly the worst idea in the world. Max wasn't lying when he said it'd been a rough few weeks, but Michael had been trying to make strides to better himself in the aftermath of Crash Con. He was drinking less and less, opting for quiet nights in the desert with Isobel strengthening his powers. And he'd even inquired about a therapist.

He hadn't actually set up the appointment yet, but he'd called and started the process. Dr. Harris seemed to understand his resistance and promised him that he'd make sure he wouldn't have to wait weeks to be seen when he was ready.

Volunteering to help a kid who was potentially having a rough time, not unlike himself for most of his life, actually sounded like a pretty decent idea. Though Michael wondered what he could have to offer a kid, and he voiced that concern out loud to Max.

"Are you kidding?" Max seemed taken aback by Michael's candor. "You have so much to offer. You're smart, funny, and caring. And come on, Michael, you're a cool cowboy. And I know from experience what a great brother you are."

Michael was silent for a few minutes, staring up at the sky, stars lighting up the junkyard, and illuminating the picturesque New Mexico sky. He was smiling despite himself when he turned to his brother.

"Where do I sign up?"

******

Michael and Porter hit it off right away.

Porter was 14, and a little older than most of the other kids in the program. He'd been in multiple foster homes growing up but had been settled with a lovely older couple in Roswell for the past two years. They were moving forward with adoption, and things were going about as well as could be expected, but they felt like Porter still struggled to make friends and fit in at school.

When Michael showed up to meet Porter, he was at the community center, playing a game on his phone. He didn't pay Michael much attention at first, too engrossed in the battle taking place on his screen, but when Michael pulled the same game up on his phone to show the younger boy he knew precisely what game his was playing and was perhaps even better at it than he was, Porter was in awe of him.

It turned out Porter was highly intelligent and had a unique sense of humor that he felt like he needed to hide from people out of fear that he'd stand out. But in attempting to protect himself, he became so closed off that he alienated himself from his peers.

Michael knew what that felt that.

"Hey, Michael, can I ask you something?" Porter said on Saturday afternoon last week, as the two played basketball on the courts down the street from the center.

"Yeah, of course. Shoot!"

Porter looked nervous, and after Michael missed his next shot, he grabbed the rebound and held the ball firmly to his chest. "I've been taking your advice and trying to talk more in class. And this girl in my chemistry class asked if I wanted to study with her for our exam next week."

Michael almost squealed with delight, but kept his emotions in check and smiled brightly instead. "That's great, right? What's the question?"

Porter fidgeted slightly and cast his eyes down to the hot blacktop. "She's kind of shy like me. Doesn't talk much or have that many friends. And I've never been one on one with a girl my age really. How do I talk to her?"

"Well, bud, you're going to be studying for the exam, so right there you have something to talk about," Michael began, choosing his next words carefully. "But I think you're asking me how to talk to her socially. All I can say is to be yourself, Porter. Talk to her like you talk to me. You ask me how I'm doing and what I've been up to. That's always a good start. And when she responds, see if there's something she says that you can build a conversation off of."

"You make it sound so easy," Porter replied, eyes never leaving the ground.

"I know," Michael sighed. "But just remember to be yourself, okay?"

Porter looked up finally and nodded softly. "You probably had no problem talking to girls when you were my age."

Michael blanched before stealing the basketball out of Porter's hand and running towards the hoop to make an easy layup, while Porter ran after him.

His mind quickly floated back to high school, and the one person who always made him dizzy back then. Alex.

Alex was the first person, outside of Max and Isobel, that he'd been able to let his guard down around. Alex made him feel safe enough to let his real personality shine through.

Even as an adult, Michael found it hard to be his true, authentic self with people.

Porter wasn't lying when he said Michael made it sound effortless to make a new friend.

*******

The market was virtually empty on Friday, which was just how Michael liked it. He was able to slip in, peruse the aisles, and get what he wanted with relative ease.

Porter had texted Michael during the week and asked if he could show him how to cook something. He'd never so much as cooked an egg before, and he felt as he approached his 15th birthday, he should know how to make one dish.

The community center had a small kitchen, and Michael had gotten permission to use it the following morning for an hour. He planned on showing Porter how to make a world-class omelet with all the fixings. And maybe even a pancake if he was feeling crazy.

He was bent over the eggs section when he heard THAT melodic voice behind him.

"Guerin?"

Michael whirled around to see Alex standing behind him, dressed to kill in a blue button-down and sleek dress pants. Michael silently cursed himself for not changing his dirty v-neck before venturing out in public.

"Alex, hey."

"Gotta love a little Friday night grocery shopping."

Michael grinned. "Yeah. You look like you're headed somewhere."

Alex looked down at himself and pulled the bottom of his shirt slightly. "Oh, I had a thing this afternoon, and I just never changed. Got home and realized I had nothing to eat for dinner, and here I am."

"Gotcha," Michael said softly.

He wasn't sure why he felt nervous around Alex, they'd been doing fine the past few months. They weren't exactly the best of friends these days, but they were far from strangers. Their relationship had evolved into a casual one, where they shared funny memes via text and checked in weekly to see how the other was doing.

Michael had heard through the grapevine that the thing between Alex and Forrest had run its course, but he didn't dare broach the topic with Alex, figuring he would bring it up on his own time.

"Having breakfast for dinner?" Alex asked, eyes peering into Michael's cart, which was filled with milk, butter, bacon, ham, peppers, onions, and cheese.

"Not quite. I've been volunteering at the Big Brothers program. And my little, Porter, wants to learn how to cook. So I wanted to start with the basics. A good old-fashioned breakfast." Michael watched Alex's face with great interest as it softened, and his eyes lit up.

He hadn't told anyone about volunteering outside of Max and Isobel. Not that he was hiding it or anything; it was just something he didn't feel the need to broadcast.

It was something just for him.

"That's incredible, Michael," Alex said with pure joy written across his face. "I bet Porter loves you."

"I don't know about all that. But he's a great kid. Real funny, and smart. It's been a lot of fun getting to know him."

"Michael Guerin, the mentor. It has a beautiful ring to it."

Michael felt his cheeks heat up and embarrassment rise-up. "I still don't know if I'm any good at it."

Alex bridged the small distance between them and placed his hand on Michael's forearm. Michael noted that he smelled like lavender and probably heaven.

"There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that you're helping this kid in more ways than you know."

Michael laughed suddenly to break the palpable sexual tension that had unexpectedly risen between the two of them. "Well, thank you for saying that."

Alex smiled gently and backed up towards his cart. "It was good to see you. Good luck with your breakfast."

"Hey," Michael almost yelled, as Alex made to continue his walk down the frozen food section. "I don't know how to cook much, but I do make a mean hamburger. Maybe you can come by this week and try one."

There was no mistaking the happiness that was radiating off the smile Alex gave him. "Yeah. I'd like that, Michael."

He watched Alex return to his shopping, and took a minute to calm his beating heart.

His exhaustion was temporarily gone, replaced with overwhelming excitement that had his body going into overdrive.

But he stamped it down and forced himself to go back to his examination of egg cartons. He needed to find the perfect set of eggs for Porter's first omelet. 

******

The breakfast demonstration the next morning was all over the place, as Porter had never even cut up a vegetable before, and Michael wasn't exactly the world's greatest teacher. But by the end of the hour, Porter had managed to make a delicious loaded omelet accompanied by a satisfactory pancake.

The two had a fun time in the kitchen, but Porter barely stopped talking about his study session with Samantha long enough to let Michael speak during the hour.

"You were right, Michael. I was just myself. I said what was on my mind, and she responded. She even laughed at my jokes. And she told me I was funny," Porter said, as the two sat down in the reception hall to dig into the omelet they'd made together.

"See! I knew you'd be just fine!"

"I really appreciate everything you've done for me over the past few weeks. You've been my first real friend here." Porter said the last words so quietly Michael almost missed them.

Michael slapped Porter on the back and gave him the biggest smile he could.

They stayed in the hall eating and conversing as smoothly as ever throughout the afternoon while making plans for what to do the following weekend.

After he bid Porter adieu, Michael saw he had a new message on his phone from Alex, and he couldn't stop the giddiness from jumping out of him if he tried.

_Alex: Was thinking maybe burgers tonight if you're free? Why wait_ _😊_

Michael's heart swelled, and he typed out his response in record speed.

_Michael: Bring your appetite, Private._

Michael began to think about the advice he'd given to his little. Being yourself would always connect you with the people who were meant to be a part of your life.

It had brought him to Alex many years ago, and it had landed him a new friend in Porter.

Maybe it was that easy.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading guys!!!


End file.
